“[Jesus said,] ‘Would you not rather say to him, “Prepare supper for me; put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink”?'” – Luke 17:8

Stand at your watchpost, Holy One, and see,
if I have brought your sustenance to table
where the hungry you have called are blessed
by word, and heart, and bread.

Stand at your watchpost, by the door,
to see if any leave with bellies pinched,
with faces sad, with spirits quenched.
See if your banquet has been served.

Stand at your watchpost, Jesus, to observe
if I have nurtured that so precious seed of faith
into a shelter for the birds and beasts and people.
O Jesus, have I grown my faith in you?

A poem/prayer based on Luke 17:5-10, the Revised Common Lectionary Gospel Reading for Year C, Proper 22 (27), with an additional nod to Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4.

The image is a photo of the shrine at the Tomb of Habakkuk in Tuyserkan, Iran. Photo by hamid3 – Own work, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=99699676. The tower may date to the 11th or 12th centuries, an architect’s attempt to render Habakkuk’s vision of the watchtower.